Staff Software Engineer, Backend

HubSpot is an AI-powered customer platform that connects marketing, sales, and service. They are seeking a Staff Software Engineer to lead the modernization and strategic evolution of HubSpot’s public API platform, focusing on redefining API standards and driving high-impact changes across complex systems.

Responsibilities:

• Own the technical direction for HubSpot’s public APIs, setting standards for contract design, versioning, and developer experience
• Design and ship new APIs while refactoring legacy APIs into simple, consistent, and stable interfaces
• Lead large, cross-cutting improvements that prioritize usability, reliability, and long-term maintainability
• Build and operate high-volume, scalable data APIs supporting significant read and write workloads
• Architect systems that safely synchronize and connect multiple distributed systems with clear, stable contracts
• Reduce technical complexity and modernize legacy patterns to create durable, adoptable solutions
• Act as a force multiplier by mentoring engineers, influencing cross-team technical decisions, and raising the API craftsmanship bar across the organization
• Partner with Product and Engineering leadership to shape API strategy and execution sequencing
• Leverage AI-assisted development tools (e.g., Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude) to enhance productivity and code quality while maintaining strong engineering standards
• Model HubSpot’s Engineering Leadership Mission and consistently operate at Staff-level reliability expectations

Requirements:

• Significant experience designing and owning public APIs used by external developers (not just internal services)
• A strong point of view on API contracts — including versioning, backward compatibility, clarity, and developer ergonomics
• Experience building and scaling high-volume read/write data APIs with strong reliability and performance characteristics
• Experience in systems integration or data synchronization, creating stable contracts across distributed systems
• A track record of delivering large, high-impact technical changes — not just optimizing components, but redefining patterns and standards
• Demonstrated cross-team influence: mentoring engineers, driving adoption of best practices, and shaping technical direction beyond your immediate team
• Deep reliability mindset: designing fault-tolerant systems, simplifying complexity, and improving operational outcomes
• Typically 10+ years of industry experience (not required, but common at this level)